


This bullet is fated

by babieken



Category: VIXX
Genre: Angst, Assassins & Hitmen, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mafia AU, Minor Character Death, Okay so the minor character death is NOT a vixx member! I REPEAT ITS NOT A VIXX MEMBER, So if thats why ur not reading u should reconsider :<, VPcollab, a lil, and spoiler alert its the bad guy so, mild violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-25
Updated: 2019-09-25
Packaged: 2020-10-28 09:40:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,262
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20776463
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/babieken/pseuds/babieken
Summary: “Hi, dad.”“No, he hasn’t suspected anything.”“He’s… I don’t know… dad maybe we shouldn’t-”





	This bullet is fated

**Author's Note:**

> Song: [Trigger](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y2Gm2-eHyD0)
> 
> Genre: Mafia, Romance
> 
> Pairing: Ken (Lee Jaehwan) x Ravi (Kim Wonshik)
> 
> [Master list](https://uwugalore.tumblr.com/post/187818190409/vixx-parallel-collaboration-masterlist)

One last kick to the chest and a bullet right in the middle of the guy’s forehead did the job. Finally. Wonshik huffed, running his bloody fingers through his messy hair. He had lost his mask somewhere along the way. The target struggled too much, even though he clearly didn’t stand a chance against the assassin. One more pest to wipeout for the king.

Wonshik was just a soldier. He did everything he had to in order to keep his king’s territory safe or expand it. The king, ‘Boss Lee,’ was in charge of Seoul’s mafia. It started with running an underground cocaine and meth lab and grew to being the owner of all the drug businesses in the city. His ambition didn’t stop there. He wanted the guns too, so he took them. It was only a matter of time until he decided that he wanted the prostitution business too.

Wonshik didn’t care. His job wasn’t to ask questions, it was to follow orders like a good soldier. If the king asked him to kill, he would kill. He had been Lee’s hitman for 19 years now, soon to be 20. He was introduced to the king by his teacher 20 years back. He had no family. His mentor, the one who taught him all he knew, was known to be the greatest killer of his time and he promised Lee that Wonshik would be as good as him, if not better.

He sat in his sedan, not caring about the blood covering his whole body. The car was to be burnt anyway. Rule number one: never take your own vehicles to missions. Rule number two: never take flashy cars to the missions. The goal is to always do the job as quickly and as quietly as possible and that meant not being seen. So you need to blend in, not stand out.

He dialed number 3 on his speed dial.

“The gun has fired,” he reported. ‘The gun’ was his code name.

“Understood.” 

He had finished another mission successfully. He threw his gun on the passenger seat and drove to the HQ without wasting any more time. A guy at the entrance took the car as he got out. Hongbin. His job was to get rid of the evidence. In this case, the car.

“Always breaks my heart to destroy a perfectly good car… If you’d just do your work less messily-” the guy whined, but he was interrupted with the hitman’s piercing glare.

“I don’t tell you how to do your job.” He stepped closer to the other man until their noses were inches apart. “So don’t tell how to fucking do mine Hongbin,” he growled.

“Jeez! Fine, I was kidding,” the guy chuckled, showing his dimples and his pearl white teeth. He drove off before Wonshik could punch him. He wouldn’t; it wasn’t worth it. The guy was a clown.

He stepped into the white hallway. Walking past the metal doors one after another, he opened the one he knew was the bunkers - not that he ever slept there. He used the room’s shower occasionally. He didn’t like meeting with the king covered in blood, even if it was the enemy’s.

He showered quickly, putting on a simple grey turtleneck and dark blue jeans. He kept some change of clothes in the room in cases of emergency.

He took the sleek elevator to the top floor where the boss’s office was located. The door was ajar and the boss looked up before he got a chance to knock.

“Mr. Kim, I was expecting you an hour ago. Come in,” Lee said calmly after taking his reading glasses off.

“My apologies sir.” He bowed his head down briefly before holding his head high again.

“Any complications during your mission?” he asked, lacing his fingers in front of his face.

“None, sir,” he said confidently.

“Good. I have another mission for you. Meet me at my house at 09 00 tomorrow.”

It was a bit strange for the King to give him a mission right after he finished one, and even stranger to ask him to meet him at his house. It wasn’t that Wonshik had never been there but this mission already seemed to be personal.

“Yes, sir. Anything else?” He was looking forward to being reunited with his bed in his apartment after a long day and a longer night he had had.

“Get some rest.You’re dismissed,” Lee said coldly, putting his glasses back on and going back to whatever he was doing before Wonshik had arrived. Wonshik wasn’t sure if the man ever slept.

..

He parked his sleek motorbike in the garage of his apartment downtown. It wasn’t huge, but nothing less to luxurious. He heard small patting sounds as soon as he unlocked the door and was met by a small ball of fluff.

“Hey buddy.” He crouched down, scratching the dog’s tiny head. A cream French bulldog. Technically, he wasn’t allowed to have a pet. But no one told ‘the gun’ what he could or couldn’t do.

“I missed you too bud,” he cooed. The dog barked in reply. It was the only time he allowed himself to feel… anything. Feelings and emotions make you vulnerable, something he could never afford to be. But he wouldn’t give up his dog for the world. He had found him in a carton with a note saying ‘needs a home’ when the dog was just a puppy. He couldn’t have been more than a week or two old. He assumed the owner couldn’t afford to take care of his dog’s pups. He wanted to walk away but he couldn’t. The dog was looking at him with big shiny eyes that were begging him to pet him and give him love. 

“Are you hungry, Dongie-ah?” He walked to the kitchen and filled the dog’s bowl and left the pup to eat in peace after petting his head one last time.

He took another shower for good measure. He hated the smell of the soap in the bunkers. He didn’t bother drying his hair, figuring he’d wear a cap the day after in case his hair was too awful in the morning. He slumped down on his bed face down, smelled the clean white sheets of his bed, and then rolled over. He liked having white sheets even though most people thought they were cold and impersonal. They made him feel clean, like the blood of hundreds of people wasn’t dripping from his fingers.

He fell asleep on top of the blanket naked.

..

The garage doors opened upon him arriving at the king’s mansion. He had decided to take his sleek black Porsche today. He thought the mission better be a good one because he was looking forward to sleeping in after a late-night mission. He parked sideways in front of the front door; he figured he wouldn’t be there for long. The giant wooden door opened, revealing the king behind it, looking suspiciously cheerful.

“Good morning Mr. Kim,” he greeted Wonshik cheerfully.

“Sir.” He bowed.

“Come on in, there’s someone I’d like you to meet.” Wonshik followed the guy through a hallway and then another huge wooden door, but not as large as the entrance. The man opened the door and stepped in with Wonshik close behind.

Wonshik froze.

There was a boy in Lee’s office. A young boy. He couldn’t be more than 22 or 23.

“Why are you standing there? Come in. You must meet my son.” His  _ son _ ?

Wonshik had seen Lee’s son. The night he joined Lee’s team, he had just turned 16. Lee’s house had been attacked and a lot of his men were down so he needed more people. That was why Wonshik was recruited early. He saw the man’s wife carrying a small child who was sobbing in her arms. The boy must’ve been around 3-4 years old. Wonshik had pitied the baby for being in such a family but he also felt jealous, because at least the kid had one.

Now here he was. A young man, tall and handsome, wearing the most expensive clothes one could find these days. The combination of the items was a bit questionable, but who was Wonshik to judge? The boy had soft hair that fell onto his forehead, soft cheeks, and a sharp nose. But the most beautiful feature on his face was probably his eyes or maybe his thick plump lips that looked impossibly pink. Wonshik couldn’t tell if the color was natural or not.

He finally stepped inside the office and closed the door behind himself. The boy was right in front of his face when he turned back with an extended hand.

“Lee Jaehwan. I’ve heard a lot about you Mr. Kim.” What was Wonshik supposed to answer to that?  _ Thank you? I know I’m a great assassin? _

“Uh…”

“Let’s begin, shall we?” the king said, already getting comfortable in his leather chair behind the desk. He gestured to the seats in front of the desk for them to sit. 

  
  


“Wonshik, you’ve been working with us for almost 20 years now, and you’ve never let me down once.”

“Just doing my job sir,” he said humbly, though it was the truth. This was the only life he knew. He was an orphan that no orphanage wanted. He wasn’t a troublemaker, but he wasn’t one to let others walk all over him, and he could certainly throw a punch.

He lived on the streets from when he was 11 until his teacher found him when he was 13, fighting 4 fully grown men who were trying to take his food. And he won. The man decided to take him in and teach him everything he knew. The man had always told him he was going to be the greatest fighter one day. Wonshik didn’t know what that meant at the time, or even now. It turned out the man was a retired assassin.

“I’ll get to the point, since we’re all busy here. I want you to train my son,” the man said.

“I beg your pardon?” Wonshik had always made it clear that he worked alone. But to teach? He was no teacher. And to teach no one but the king’s son who was probably a spoiled brat? No way.

“Jaehwan is my only son, and I’m old. I’ve heard word that he’s going to be targeted sooner or later. My enemies will take any chance they get.”

“Sir, I understand your concern, but we have professionals to protect you and your family from any harm-”

“I don’t want babysitters,” the young boy - Jaehwan - interrupted. Wonshik turned to look at the boy who was staring at his hands on his lap. “I’m tired of having men follow me around like I’m some dumb celebrity. I want to be able to protect myself. And I can. I have been trained over the years. I can shoot precisely and I can fight with small knives, but father thinks that’s not enough.” He sighed and looked up at Wonshik, looking at him with his big doe eyes. “So please, do this for me.”

Wonshik didn’t know what to say. The boy seemed desperate. And in some ways, he seemed like he was in pain. Wonshik imagined it must not have been so easy to be the son of the biggest gangster in town no matter how rich that makes you.

“Alright. I’ll train you,” he agreed before he could change his mind.

..

“You’re not taking me to a temple, are you?” Jaehwan asked from the passenger seat of Wonshik’s SUV. It was a week after he had agreed to train the boy.

“No, why would I take you to a temple?”

“Weren’t you trained in one? Like in  _ Kung Fu Panda _ ?”

“...I’m not familiar with ‘ _ Kung Fu Panda _ ’ but nevertheless, we aren’t going to a temple,” he said sternly.

“You’re not familiar with  _ Kung Fu Panda _ \- you gotta be kidding me,” Jaehwan gasped, throwing his hands up in disbelief. Wonshik didn’t say anything, just stared at the road ahead completely uninterested about whatever the boy was about to start rambling about. “Man, do you live in a cave? How have you not watched that movie?”

Wonshik sighed. The boy was not going to let it go. 

“Siri, show me the poster for the movie  _ Kung Fu Panda _ ,” he said loudly. Three pictures of the movie showed up on the car’s monitor.

“This is an animation movie. For kids.” Wonshik rolled his eyes. Jaehwan was a child and Wonshik was already regretting his decision to train him.

“Not all animations are for kids,” Jaehwan chided and then paused. “Okay, this one is but it’s still a great movie!”

Wonshik gave him side-eyes. “Sure, for kids.”

“Dude, how old even are you? You act like you’re 50.”

Wonshik ran his fingers through his hair. “Old enough.”

“To what? Remember the dinosaurs?” The younger shook his head and turned his head towards the window. 

Wonshik parked his car in front of an old wooden house. They weren’t outside of the town yet but pretty close to the edge. It was not a temple, like Jaehwan thought it would be. It was just an old cabin; no houses or shops or anything else was around. It was his teacher’s house where he lived and trained. The backyard was connected to miles and miles of the woods. 

“This is nice, in a creepy way,” Jaehwan said looking around the cabin. “Do we even get Wi-Fi here?”

“Yes. Get your stuff to the room on the second floor, I’m gonna get some food.” Wonshik threw the boy a small key chain and got in his car and drove away. 

“Hey! Don’t leave me here!” Jaehwan shouted. “Douchebag...”

..

Wonshik came back around 12 hours later.

Jaehwan was out of the door before he even shut the engine. “Where the fuck were you?! You left me here to fucking starve!” he shouted.

“Calm down, Mr. Lee. You’re not gonna die,” Wonshik said mockingly.

“What is wrong with you? It took us less than 5 hours to get here, where the hell were you all this time?!”

“Waiting for you to contact me.” Wonshik crossed his arms and leaned back on the car.

“What? There is no service here unless you forg-”

“I will break your pretty nose if you don’t lower your voice right now,” Wonshik growled. “It was a test. Did you even bother looking around? All you had to do was get the satellite working.”

The younger turned 3 different shades of red up to his pointy ears, his mouth forming a straight 

line. He looked like he wanted to say something or maybe scream, but he did neither.

“Get the bags from the backseats. We should eat.”

Jaehwan carried back 3 bags and Wonshik took the rest.

“At least you figured out the power.” The lights were on; it was late evening.

“And the heating system,” the younger mumbled.

“Good boy,” Wonshik chuckled, ruffling the boy’s hair.

“Hey!” Jaehwan snapped, pulling back to try to straighten his hair. Wonshik laughed harder. The kid was just like a puppy. Suddenly he missed his dog. He had to leave him at a dog hotel for the time being. They could be here for weeks or maybe months.

Wonshik made them something simple with chicken and vegetables and ordered the younger to go to bed early since they were starting training early in the morning.

..

“Why couldn’t we start an hour later?” Jaehwan whined, dragging himself down the stairs; he didn’t know where they were leading to. Wonshik had basically poured some green smoothie down his throat as soon as he woke up and dragged him downstairs with him. 

“Are you gonna keep me in some dungeon for a day?” the boy shrieked.

“No, calm down! Jeez.” Wonshik rolled his eyes at the younger’s dramatic reaction.

He tapped on the digital lock on the door to reveal a keypad and fingerprint scanner. Wonshik dragged his thumb on the scanner and the door opened to reveal what looked like a huge gym with soundproof walls and ceiling lights, a couple of boxing bags and some work-out equipment, and the floor was completely covered in rubber mats. 

“Woah! This is cool.”

“Take off your shoes.” He pulled Jaehwan back before he could step on the mats with his shoes on.

“Oh, sorry.” He toed out of his shoes and followed Wonshik inside. “So… no Wing Chun dummy?” 

Wonshik laughed, rubbing his neck. “I actually broke it a few years ago. Never bothered replacing it, it’s not essential.”

“So you still come here?”

“Yeah, I still come here sometimes to clear my mind,” he said, dropping his water bottle and small towel on the ground, and stopped. Jaehwan did the same, assuming the lessons were about to begin.

“I’m ready Master,” he said half-jokingly.

“Please never call me that,” Wonshik growled.

“O..kay?”

“I understand you already had some training,” Wonshik began, standing in position.

“Yeah, I’ve been doing-” Jaehwan didn’t get to finish his sentence because Wonshik kicked him in the face.

“I don’t care. No one cares what kinds of martial arts you know. You just have to use it. Get up.” Wonshik stood back, giving the boy some time to find his footing. 

Jaehwan groaned in pain and stood up, although it hurt less than he thought.

“I didn’t actually want to hurt you.” Wonshik had apparently read his mind. “Start.” It was the only warning Jaehwan got before a punch came his way, which he dodged successfully; but before he could celebrate his victory, another fist hit him in the gut, but not hard enough to knock him down.

“Come on, you can do better. Try to not get hit. That’s the first lesson.” 

It went on for nearly two hours with only 3 short breaks in between for water. Jaehwan was clearly out of practice. He wasn’t nearly fast enough even with Wonshik going at him with one-third of his usual strength and speed. They were sitting down on the floor drinking water and toweling their sweat off.

“For now, we’ll work on your reflexes. You need to become faster.”

The younger nodded with his cheeks full of water.

..

“Man, I feel like I’ve been run over by a truck. Everything hurts,” Jaehwan groaned, falling on the couch after taking a shower. It was past 8 pm. They had trained all day, running on protein bars and water. “Can we order pizza?” he asked, blinking innocently.

Wonsik gave him a long, meaningful look from the other seat. “Jaehwan, we’re in the middle of nowhere, unless you forgot.”

The younger pouted like the overgrown child he was. Wonshik’s heart may have melted a little at the cuteness. No man in his mid-twenties should've been allowed to look so adorable. But Wonshik let nothing show on his face.

“How about this, I’ll get us pizza the first time you take me down.” He smirked.

“But this could take months!” the younger cried.

“Then you better work harder, little boy.”

“I’m not little!” Jaehwan shrieked. Wonshik couldn’t help but laugh at the childish behavior. He thought he would be annoyed at the younger but he was finding it kind of entertaining to be around him. But maybe it was still too early to decide.

..

“We’ve been doing this the whole month…” Jaehwan whined, rubbing the back of his gloved hand on his forehead, trying to move his hair away from his eye. Wonshik had decided that 

kickboxing could help with his reflexes.

“You think you can take me now?” Wonshik smirked, taking the pads off his arms and brushed the strands of hair stuck onto Jaehwan’s forehead away. The moment suddenly felt too intimate. They were standing way too close. Wonshik took a step back and cleared his throat. 

“No…? But can’t we do something different today?” Jaehwan took his gloves off with difficulty; it was time for a break anyway.

“Sure, we could practice shooting after lunch.” Maybe it would do both of them good spending some time out of this hell hole. 

They ate light and rested for a while. It was late afternoon with the sun still high up in the sky. Wonshik put up some standard targets in the backyard. He had brought two firearms for this practice: his own personal one and a 9mm Glock for Jaehwan.

“Is this custom made?” Jaehwan asked, observing Wonshik’s gun in his hand. It was slightly bigger than the one Jaehwan was supposed to be using, longer pistol and dark purple streaks on the grip.

“It’s a ghost gun, so basically yes it’s custom made.” Wonshik nodded, putting on his safety glasses and earplugs. Jaehwan did the same, handing Wonshik his gun and taking the other one.

Wonshik was about to run him by the basics but Jaehwan was way ahead of him. He checked if the gun was loaded, fixed his legs’ position, pulled the slide, aimed and fired. Wonshik was too stunned to speak. Jaehwan fired 6 bullets and then put the gun down on the small table.

“You could say shooting is a hobby of mine. Go ahead, check the target,” Jaehwan said smugly. Wonshik arched a brow and walked towards the targets.

The 6 bullets were shot so they were almost shaped like a human heart in the middle of the target’s chest. Impressive. For a kid.

He walked back to their spot. “Not bad. How about moving targets? You know, your enemy won’t stand still for you to make a perfect shot.”

Jaehwan rolled his eyes. “I know, I can shoot moving targets too,” he said and left towards the cabin. He came back a minute later with a pack of canned beer. Wonshik had bought them on the first day but they had never gotten the chance to drink them. Until now.

He opened one and chugged it in one go, then threw the can up in the air and made a shot. It came down with a hole in it.

Wonshik smirked. He grabbed one and did the same only to hit it 8 times, keeping it in the air for about 4-5 seconds. It came down looking like Swiss cheese.

“Game on.” Jaehwan grabbed another one. He managed to shoot it 3 times.

..

They kept going until only 2 out of 24 cans were left. Both men were wasted. After their fifth beer the shots stopped hitting the target and it was just them laughing at the cans hitting the ground. The guns were long forgotten on the table; they were laying on the grass, looking at the night sky. They barely noticed the sun going down.

“You know, Wonshik, you’re not as scary as I had heard.”

“Whatcha mean? I’m very scary!” Wonshik said and made an angry face that would make a 5-year-old laugh. And since Jaehwan wasn’t mentally all that different from one, he started laughing and fake screaming, trying to crawl away from Wonshik.

“Help! A dumbass is trying to kill me!”

Wonshik cracked up and pulled the younger back beside him by his waist.

“Jaehwan-ah… you’re not as annoying as I thought you’d be,” he confessed, voice deeper than usual.

“Yah! I’m very annoying thank you very mu- wait no! Who said I’m annoying?” he yelled, sitting up and realizing halfway that he was going at it the wrong way.

Wonshik laughed harder and pulled him back down again. “Shut up, dumbass.”

“That’s you. Find another insult,” Jaehwan said, puckering his lips. Wonshik rubbed his chin, thinking.

“Ongdongie,” he giggled. The big bad scary assassin who has never missed a shot, never failed on a mission,  _ giggled _ .

“That’s not an insult. I have a great ass.” 

“You look like my dog, Ongdongie.” He giggled again, booping the younger’s pointy nose and then ruffling his hair. The man wasn’t the best drinker, you see.

“You have a dog? Named ass?” Jaehwan asked, looking at the older with wide eyes. “Seriously, how old are you?”

“Shh… It’s a secret!” He shushed.

“Your age?”

“My dog. Ongdongie...”

Jaehwan groaned in annoyance. The man was never gonna tell him his age, even when he was drunk off his ass. “Alright old man, time for bed.”

He held the older’s waist, throwing one of his arms around his shoulder for more support.

“I can’t believe you kill people for a living but can’t hold your liquor,” he complained while carrying the bigger man towards the cabin. Thank god Wonshik’s room was downstairs. Jaehwan managed to half drag Wonshik to his bed without any major injuries. He dropped the man down in the mattress, but he was pulled down with him. Wonshik was probably holding his shirt. Said man groaned under him in pain.

“You could’ve literally not dragged me down with you, it’s your own fault.” Jaehwan made a 

move to stand up but Wonshik was still holding onto his shirt tightly.

“Could you maybe let me…” He looked up to Wonshik, suddenly being face to face with him. Too close. “...go?”

It was like Wonshik’s eyes were pulling him in. Wonshik was handsome; it wasn’t like Jaehwan hadn’t noticed, he wasn’t blind. But up close he was gorgeous. There was something in the older’s eyes that Jaehwan couldn’t read. Something mysterious. Something… sad. He didn’t realize he was leaning in until his lips touched Wonshik’s, feeling the warm chapped skin under his soft ones. Wonshik’s eyes fell closed. Jaehwan was frozen on top of him, completely unmoving. He finally gave in and closed his eyes and pressed his lips harder onto Wonshik’s, but pulled back right away. Wonshik’s eyes stayed closed. Jaehwan crawled back, Wonshik’s fist loosening on his shirt. He must have fallen asleep. Jaehwan left the room and closed the door. He sighed, letting out a breath he didn’t know he was holding.

‘What am I doing?’ he shook his head ran upstairs to his room. He wasn’t nearly as wasted as the older thanks to years of being isolated. Being an outsider, the son of a gangster with no friends, didn’t leave him to do much more than to get drunk often. He could keep his liquor pretty well.

He searched through the bag of clothes he brought with him and pulled out a burner phone. He dialed the number already saved in it.

_ “Hi, dad.” _

_ “No, he hasn’t suspected anything.” _

_ “He’s… I don’t know… dad maybe we shouldn’t-” _

_ “Listen, I really don’t think he has any ill intentions.” _

_ “Yes, dad.” _

_ “Goodnight.” _

..

Wonshik was in pain. His eyes were closed but he could still see the sunlight from behind his eyelids and it was blinding. Why did he sleep with the blinds pulled up? Wait... when did he even go to bed? Why was he in so much pain?

He slowly opened his eyes, covering them with his hands immediately. He sat on the bed with difficulty.  _ Fuck _ . It got even worse. A sharp pain spread through his skull. He groaned in pain. The door of his room opened.

“Morning, sunshine,” Jaehwan said cheerfully. Wonshik groaned louder. Jaehwan’s smile wasn’t all that different than the sun, almost as bright. “How are you feeling?”

“How do you think?” Wonshik replied, voice sounding like it was coming from miles away.

“Here, I made you something.” He walked into the room and stood in front of the older with a mug in his hand. 

_ Finally, something to block the blinding light.  _ Wonshik leaned forward, his forehead resting on the younger’s belly. Jaehwan hesitantly patted his head. Wonshik…  _ moaned _ ?

“Aw, who’s the dog now?” Jaehwan snorted.

“What?” Wonshik growled, pulling back from the soft comfortable wall that was Jaehwan’s stomach to look up at him.

“You don’t remember? You told me I remind you of your dog.” Wonshik just stared at him in shock. He should not have bought beer in the first place. “And then you told me that it’s a secret.” 

This wasn’t good. Wonshik thought hard, trying to remember as much as possible. The last thing he remembered was laughing and lying on the grass.

“Don’t worry, you didn’t tell me any other secret. You didn’t even tell me your age!” 

“I’m really sorry.” Wonshik sat back, pinching his nose. “It was irresponsible and unprofessional of me to-” He was trying to apologize but the younger interrupted.

“Hey, no worries. We’re all human. Happens to the best of us.” He patted Wonshik’s shoulder, handing him the mug.

_ I’m barely human. _

“This looks like a green poison.” Wonshik winced.

“It’s not! It’s my mom’s hangover smoothie. Believe me, it doesn’t even taste that bad.”

Wonshik looked at him suspiciously. The boy just smiled sweetly. Wonshik took a gulp of the thick smoothie. It really wasn’t that bad.

“See?” Jaehwan beamed.

“How are you even functioning right now? We had the same amount of beer,” Wonshik asked after drowning half of the mug in go.

“I used to be an alcoholic when I was a teenager. Tough times.” He sighed dramatically and sat beside Wonshik on his bed.

“So like… two weeks ago?” 

“Ha ha. Says the man with an unknown age who can’t drink 6 beers without dying,” Jaehwan snorted. “Anyway, we should probably chill today. You look like you can barely move your arms.”

“Yeah… probably,” Wonshik groaned. He was admittedly not a fan of drinking. He never had friends to hang out and get drunk with and always found the whole ‘drinking your sorrows away’ extremely idiotic. Why should your liver pay the price for your mistakes?

“And since I beat you, we’re getting pizza.” 

“When did you beat me? In your sleep, princess?” Wonshik tried to smirk but his face looked like he was getting a penicillin shot.

“Last night, in drinking,” he said proudly.

“That doesn’t count. That wasn’t even-” Wonshik tried to deny.

“Uh uh! You passed out. I beat you. I’m borrowing your car, see you in a few hours handsome.” Jaehwan winked and he was out of the room in a blink.

_ What did I get myself into… _

_ .. _

Jaehwan came back in a couple of hours, which was sooner than Wonshik thought. Wonshik had only moved from his room to the couch in the living room. He could not find it in himself to even go to the kitchen. 

  
  


“Honey, I’m home!” Jaehwan called from the door. “...You still look like shit, dude.”

“Thanks,” he growled. Jaehwan left the pizza on the kitchen table and came back with a glass of water.

“I can’t believe I’m taking care of you.” Wonshik took the glass thankfully. “Go take a shower, I’ll reheat the pizza.”

“Where did you even get it so fast?”

“The next town. Figured we’re closer to it than the city.” He shrugged.

Wonshik took a quick shower that left him feeling a lot more alive than a few hours before. He walked into the kitchen barefoot, in comfy clothes and a towel around his neck. Jaehwan smiled at seeing him. “Hi.”

“Hey! You look like a person again.” Jaehwan beamed, putting a plate in front of him. Wonshik sat, inhaling the smell of pizza. Jaehwan sat down in front of him with a plate in front of himself.

“You waited for me?” Wonshik asked shyly. He figured Jaehwan would eat and leave some for him while he showers. 

“Of course! I wanted to eat together.” He smiled, eyes turning into a crescent moon. “Who would wanna eat pizza alone?”

Wonshik felt something in his heart break. Or maybe it was a broken part falling back into its place. All his life he had eaten alone. Even when he lived with his master. He fought hard not to tear up, but his face couldn’t hide all the emotions that were threatening to burst out. He nodded, not trusting his voice to speak. Jaehwan gave him a sad, understanding smile and they ate in silence. Not an uncomfortable or awkward one, just peaceful. They understood each other in ways most people didn’t.

Jaehwan picked up his plate when they finished. “I rented a movie, can you plug my laptop to the TV? I’ll do the dishes.”

“Uh… sure.” Wonshik felt weird in his stomach. Not from the food, but from everything that had happened that day. He didn’t know how to feel about all of this. He knew technically he wasn’t allowed to feel anything, it’s what his master always used to tell him. _ Feelings make you vulnerable.  _ He felt vulnerable. No one had ever seen him the way Jaehwan did that day. No one had ever seen him being a mess. But Jaehwan did and he understood. 

He plugged the laptop in eventually after zoning out 5 times. Thankfully he was done when Jaehwan came into the living room with a huge bowl of popcorn.

“You can’t have a movie night without popcorn!” Jaehwan said before Wonshik could complain. He handed Wonshik the bowl and went to his laptop. He typed a few things and then a big Netflix logo showed up on the screen. He walked back and sat right next to Wonshik with no space between them.

“What movie did you rent?” Wonshik asked. Jaehwan just smiled and pointed to the television.

It was  _ Kung Fu Panda _ .

“Seriously? Out of all the movies you could’ve rented…”

“Shut up, you haven’t seen it and that was something to be fixed. Now watch.”

Wonshik couldn’t believe he was sitting next to a child with a big bowl of popcorn in his lap watching a kids’ movie.

Okay, maybe the movie wasn’t so bad after all. The panda was hilarious.

“This is us. I’m Shifu and you’re Po,” Wonshik said, making Jaehwan laugh.

“Hey! I wanna be Tigress.” He pouted.

They kept talking and laughing and rewinding the movie. Wonshik didn’t remember the last time he had laughed so much in his life.

“Actually, I think you’re Tai Lung,” Jaehwan said, licking his salty fingers. 

“Yeah. A monster that needs to be locked up,” Wonshik said quietly, trying to fake being upset.

“No, I didn’t mean it like that… I meant like he’s a sexy snow leopard and so skilled he basically whacked the furious five!”

Wonshik stared at him for 5 seconds before he bursted into laughter. “Sexy leopard huh!”

“ _ Snow  _ leopard! Don’t laugh, you’re so mean,” Jaehwan cried. Wonshik laughed harder.

They kept bickering about how Jaehwan thought that Tai Lung actually deserved to be the Dragon Warrior and Wonshik didn’t.

Eventually, the movie ended and the screen went black. It was dark outside, they had finished more than half of the bowl and Wonshik felt like he was going to explode if he ate another kernel of popcorn. They sat in silence for a few minutes until Jaehwan spoke. “So, how was it?”

“It was not bad. Okay, it was good, I enjoyed it,” he finally admitted. Although he was sure it wouldn’t be half that enjoyable if he had watched it by himself.

“I know you didn’t mean it but…” Wonshik didn’t know what came over him but a strange feeling in his gut was telling him to tell Jaehwan about his past. “I really am like Tai Lung.” He took a deep breath. Jaehwan didn't interrupt him. 

“My teacher found me fighting on the street when I was young. I was an orphan living out there. Some older boys tried to take the food I had worked for and earned all day. I think there were 4 of them. I beat them all up and took back my food. To be honest I don’t even remember how I managed to fight them all. Anyway, he saw me do that and took me in. He trained me to be the best killer. A monster,” Wonshik said, voice breaking at the end. Jaehwan grabbed the bowl and put it away on the table and turned his body towards the older.

“Wonshik, look at me.” He took Wonshik’s face in his sticky, salty hands. Wonshik looked up after a few long seconds of fighting his tears. “You’re not a monster.” Jaehwan spoke firmly, like he was ordering Wonshik to believe him.

Wonshik shook his head, a tear falling on his cheek. “I am, Jae, I have killed so many-”

“Tell me. How many innocent people have you ever killed? For fun or because they annoyed you?” Jaehwan asked. Wonshik paused. He had only ever killed targets he was given - other gangster members or bosses. People who betrayed the boss. He was never one to take jobs like killing cheating husbands and such.

“Exactly. Listen to me. You are not a monster. That man took advantage of you. He made you into a weapon. But you’re still human.” Another tear fell out of Wonshik’s eye, and then they kept coming. Jaehwan pulled him into his chest, holding him tightly. They stayed like that with Jaehwan rubbing his back as he sobbed into the younger’s shoulder. But his sobs eventually quieted. They stayed cuddled up on the couch with Jaehwan’s arms around Wonshik and the older’s head on his shoulder.

“The first day of my training, I was 12… maybe 13, he left me in the cabin for 2 days.” Jaehwan remembered his first day. He was left for only a few hours and he was an adult. “There was only some bread in the house, no light, no heating, and the animals’ sounds during the night… I thought I was gonna die there,” he said, voice hoarse from crying.

“That man was a monster. God, you were just a kid!” Jaehwan tightened his grip around his shoulders. “How old were you when you joined to be my dad’s hitman?”

Wonshik pulled back a bit, running his fingers through his hair and then laying sideways on the couch to be face to face with the younger. Jaehwan’s hands were on his knees drawing meaningless shapes. The gesture was oddly calming. “Barely 16. It was the night of that big attack. I saw you there, you were just a baby.” Wonshik chuckled bitterly. “You can figure out my age now,”

“What, 35? 36? You’re still so young…” Wonshik stood up, walking in circles in front of the couch.

“Can we just.... pretend tonight and last night never happened?” Wonshik asked, voice shaky.

“You remembered?” 

“Not at first but… It came back in pieces,” Wonshik confessed. He was trying really damn hard not to think about the feeling of having Jaehwan’s lips on him.

The younger nodded, head dropping low. “We should go to bed. We start early tomorrow to make up for today,” Wonshik said and left to his room and closed the door.

Jaehwan let out the breath he was holding shakily. He was near tears, he didn’t know what to do. He didn’t know if he could do what his father had asked him to.

..

The next few weeks were spent on hardcore training. Wonshik trained him using different stuff, from fighting with wooden sticks to fighting with one arm tied behind his back. He even taught him some unique methods of shooting with a gun.

Jaehwan expected Wonshik to act cold after that night, but he didn’t. Just as he said he would, he pretended like those two nights never happened. He was still strict and professional during training and relatively friendly the other times.

“I want a ghost gun,” Jaehwan said during one of their shooting practices. “In red!”

Wonshik blinked at him in disbelief.

“The whole point of a ghost gun is to be untraceable. A red gun won’t need a serial number to be tracked to its owner.” Wonshik rolled his eyes. Jaehwan pressed his lips together, making them form a straight line. He did that when he was annoyed. “But yes, you need one. We will get you one soon.”

“Hey, I was thinking… There was a mall in the town I went that day to get pizza. We could maybe go and hang out there for a while? It’s been forever since we left here…” Jaehwan asked hesitantly, like he thought Wonshik would get mad.

“Sure. Do you need something specific?”

“Uh… no?” Jaehwan arched one brow.

“Then why do you wanna go to the mall?” Wonshik looked like he seriously had no idea.

“Have you never went to a mall to just hang out and look?” Jaehwan shouldn’t really be surprised at this point.

“No. I don’t like being around too many people.”

“Don’t worry, it’s not a big mall. There won’t be that many people,” Jaehwan assured him.

He was wrong.

..

“I mean… It’s a small town,” Jaehwan laughed nervously. “It’s their only mall probably, and it’s the weekend so…” 

They had arrived at the mall around 5 in the afternoon the day after. It took them 20 minutes to find an empty spot in the parking garage. Jaehwan kept insisting to go back but Wonshik said it was fine. The inside wasn’t much better.

“Jaehwan, it’s fine. I don’t have social anxiety, I just don’t like big crowds. It’s no big deal.” Wonshik shook his head, smiling. 

“But I wanted you to have fun!” Jaehwan pouted. Wonshik stared at the crowd, people buzzing around doing their own thing. Being alive. Wonshik was a killer. He took lives, sort of like the Grim Reaper. It didn’t feel right to be among normal people like women and kids.

“I’m not sure I  _ can  _ have fun at all.” He chuckled but no humor was behind it. 

“Hey! Don’t do that.” Jaehwan frowned.

“Do what?”

“That! I know what you’re thinking. You think you don’t deserve to be happy and have fun because you… because of your job.” He took a deep breath before continuing, “But listen to me, you had no other choice. You had to do everything you could to survive. This isn’t your fault, you didn’t choose this life.” He took one of Wonshik’s hands in his, rubbing the rough knuckles with his thumb.

Wonshik squeezed Jaehwan’s hand in his and smiled. “We should go inside, we’re kinda blocking the way.”

They walked in front of the shops, aimlessly looking at everything.

“I never understood the appeal of browsing the mall when you don’t need anything.”

“Seriously? I love walking around and looking at stuff. Plus I always end up buying a ton of shit I don’t need.”

“I usually order everything online and if there’s something that required me to go to a mall I go straight to the target shop and leave as soon as I make the purchase.”

“Do you make everything sound like a mafia-y job on purpose or is that how you talk?”

Wonshik was holding his stomach and laughing out loud in the middle of the mall. A few people looked at them weirdly. No one had ever made Wonshik laugh like this in his life. Sure, he had to laugh at his boss’s lame jokes and victim-to-be’s when he was undercover, but a real genuine laugh? In public? That was a first. He had this warm feeling in his stomach for a few days now. Maybe weeks. Maybe he should see a doctor.

..

There was a sweet little cafe on the top floor of the mall with a glass ceiling and a gorgeous view of the small rural town.

“This is kinda nice,” Wonshik said, looking around the place. It was a good habit to check for any blind spot or the emergency exit in case something happened.

They picked a spot near the window; the sun was setting and the sky was changing colors every few minutes. Wonshik felt like he was seeing the sunset for the first time, even though he had spent countless days outside doing ‘work’ or training and sometimes following targets all day, which included the dusk.

A  _ click  _ sound shook him out of his thoughts. Jaehwan had taken a picture of him looking outside at the sunset.

“Delete it.”

“What? Why? You look so handsome and the light was perfect-”

“I said, delete it,” Wonshik said, this time more harshly. Jaehwan pouted and looked at him with round glossy eyes.

“Don’t you at least wanna see it first?” he said in a small voice. 

Wonshik huffed. “Fine, let me see.”

Wonshik couldn’t believe the person in the picture was him. This guy looked… handsome, chill and… normal. He shook his head.

“It’s nice, but you have to delete it if you don’t want both of us to be in danger.” He sighed. It was for the best.

“Okay…” Jaehwan frowned and tapped on his screen a few times. “See? Gone.” He turned his screen towards Wonshik.

“Thank you.”

They ended up buying a bunch of useless stuff they probably didn’t need: a set of cute small jars for keeping different spices, (Jaehwan insisted the spices needed a better home), napkins with pictures of  _ Kung Fu Panda _ on them, scented candles, and a small reading lamp that sticks to the edge of a book.

“Do you even read?” Wonshik teased.

“Excuse you! Of course I read.”

“What was the last book you read?” Wonshik asked, crossing his arms. Jaehwan made a sound that was a mixture of a shriek and a groan and started walking faster towards the car. Wonshik just laughed, walking faster behind him.

..

They made a small meal when they came back for dinner, both feeling almost full with the huge cheesecake they shared at the cafe. This meant Wonshik cooked and Jaehwan chatted his ears off while sitting on the counter. Jaehwan did set up the the table, though. He lit their new candle in the middle and put their special napkins on the plates and everything.

Wonshik didn’t know what he was going to do after this whole training thing was over. He wasn’t sure if he could go back to cooking alone in silence, for one, and eating alone in his apartment. Jaehwan had made the old cabin feel so lived-in and warm it felt like he had lived there all his life. Wonshik was never happier to be living in the cabin.

“So, was this fun after all?” Jaehwan said, taking the wet plate Wonshik handed him to dry. Washing the dishes together was another thing Wonshik was going to miss.

“It was. Although, I think movie night was more my type.”

“Oh so you like staying-in, watching movies, and cuddle dates.” He giggled.

“We did not cuddle.” Oh wait, they did. But they were pretending that didn’t happen. Jaehwan’s whole face sort of melted down. He suddenly went from smiley and giggly to cold and stoic.

Wonshik didn’t know what to do. He didn’t mean to hurt the kid. But he was still figuring out what happened that night.

“Jaehwan I...”

“It’s okay, I forgot- that didn’t happen,” he mumbled, looking at the tiles under his feet, then turning back to walk away and out of the kitchen. Wonshik caught his wrist, pulling him back. He stumbled and fell into Wonshik’s chest.

“I’m sorry,” Wonshik said without letting go of the younger’s wrist or doing anything to put some distance between them.

Jaehwan shook himself away from him, but not too far. “It’s okay, I just stumbled.”

“No, I mean… For…” He tried to find the words but he didn’t know what he wanted to say.

“For what?” Jaehwan inched closer, looking up at Wonshik with round, deep brown eyes that seemed like a black hole..

“I…” Wonshik’s face lowered like it was being pulled down by some cosmic force.

Jaehwan’s lashes fluttered, looking back and forth between Wonshik’s lips and eyes.

It happened in 0.02 seconds. One second they were staring at each other, and the next both had their eyes closed, and the only part of their bodies that were functioning were their lips. Wonshik had lost count of the times he had stared at the younger’s lips wondering how they would feel under his. How they taste. When they rounded over the water bottle. When he bit them right before pulling the trigger. When they stretched to a huge grin, showing off his perfect teeth.

So Wonshik didn’t waste any time to get the answers to his questions. 

They felt so so soft. Softer than babies’ skin. And so warm Wonshik felt like his lips were on fire. They tasted like cranberry. Wonshik had seen him carry around a red lip balm everywhere, using it every few hours. 

Jaehwan opened his mouth, licking Wonshik’s lips, encouraging him to do the same. Wonshik bit his bottom lip, pulling it back a little just to let it go and do it again, this time sucking it in his mouth, tasting every inch of it. They stumbled backwards until someone hit something. 

Jaehwan’s back had hit the fridge. Wonshik used that opportunity to push his body closer to the younger. All his life he had never craved another human being so much. Man or woman. He had been with both. Requirements of the job, or occasionally filling the empty space beside him in bed if he needed someone, something, to help stop the voices in his head. 

Jaehwan circled one leg around Wonshik’s waist, pulling him even closer. Wonshik clawed Jaehwan’s jeans with one hand and held his face with another.

“Take me to bed,” Jaehwan panted with shiny lips, glossy eyes and pink cheeks. “Please...”

Wonshik didn’t need to be told twice. He caught Jaehwan’s lips again, blindly pulling him towards his room. He grabbed Jaehwan’s other thigh, pulling it up towards his waist. Jaehwan circled his arms around his neck, now completely off the ground and hanging off Wonshik like a koala. Jaehwan giggled, hiding his face in the crook of Wonshik’s neck. The walk to Wonshik’s room was short. He lowered the boy on his bed as gently as possible, like he was dealing with a delicate flower. Jaehwan’s legs fell open as soon as his back hit the mattress, Wonshik towering above him. Wonshik took a moment to admire the beautiful boy under him, memorizing every detail. He kissed Jaehwan again, stealing his breath away and making him squeal. 

For just a few hours Wonshik threw away all his concerns. His past. His job. His boss. 

A few hours to taste Jaehwan, to explore and worship every inch of his body.

..

They didn’t talk about it the next day. Or the next day. Or the next. 

It had been almost a week. Wonshik didn’t ask him to ‘pretend it never happened,’ didn’t really say anything. They went back to training from early morning until the wee hours of the night. But it happened again. And again. During the day they would train. They would kick and punch and shoot. The tension building up as the day went by, until it would break.

_ “Have you finished your mission?” _

“No, dad… I need more time,” Jaehwan stuttered.

_ “It has been months, boy. What are you doing? Raising a child?”  _ the voice on the other side of the line said mockingly.

“It takes time, dad, there are still things he hasn’t told me yet,” he insisted.

“ _ You have one week.” The call ended. _

Jaehwan squeezed the small phone in his hand until it crushed. He was helpless. He didn’t know what to do. He couldn’t do it.

He couldn’t kill Wonshik.

He had doubts from the beginning; not that he had never killed anyone, but it was different then. They had been attacked numerous times and he had a gun that he had to use a couple of times. He was defending himself and his family.

His father insisted that it was the same.

‘He has become too powerful, son. I heard words that he’s plotting my murder. He would kill me, you and your mother and everyone we know and love to take what I have built my whole life with blood, sweat and tears.’

Jaehwan wanted to ask who’s blood, sweat and tears his father was talking about but he didn’t dare. He didn’t have a choice but to obey his father, the king.

He thought if the guy really is as bad as they say he is, it wouldn’t be that hard. He didn’t even need to fight him or look him in the eyes and pull the trigger; he just needed 6 drops of Flunitrazepam and it was done. But not only was he certain that Wonshik has no plan to attack them, he was now in love with him.

With the passing of each day Jaehwan got more jittery. Every day was one day closer to the one week mark. He tried to tell Wonshik; he practiced 100 times what to say, but he couldn’t. What if Wonshik didn’t believe him? What if he didn’t like him back? Or worse, what if he killed him for lying to him? The last one was highly unlikely, but still.

Wonshik kept asking what was wrong, but he just said he was tried. He even declined Wonshik’s suggestion of going out. He was too afraid to go out. It was easier to attack them if they were outside.

Another week passed and nothing. Jaehwan was starting to think that maybe his father had changed his mind. But he knew he wouldn’t just do that. He was just waiting for the right time to strike when they were expecting it the least.

..

Wonshik heard noises. He was a light sleeper; he had to be always alert.

He moved quickly, taking the gun from under his pillow and carefully walking up the stairs towards Jaehwan’s room to inform him about the intruders. He opened the door slowly. The boy appeared to be asleep under the heavy covers. They hadn’t been sleeping together since Jaehwan started acting weird for the last few weeks. 

“Jaehwan, wake up!” he whispered, hoping it’d be enough to wake him up. It wasn’t. He stepped into the room, gun in hand. He lowered the gun when he reached the bed. He went to shake the boy awake but it was just... pillows?

Something hard hit him in the head and the world went dark.

He woke up in the back of a van. He opened his eyes with difficulty. He found that his wrists and ankles were tied. His mouth wasn’t. He turned his head, looking around. Jaehwan was lying unconscious beside him. He turned to the other side, finding an armed man in a mask was sitting up beside him.

“What did you do to him you son of a bitch?” he barked. The man kicked him in the gut. His hands were tied back so he had nothing to protect himself with.

“Shut up, scum.”

He couldn’t believe this had happened. How did it happen? How did he not notice earlier?

More importantly, how did they find them? No one knew the location of the cabin except him and the boss since the teacher had died and no one knew they were there except the king himself. It didn’t make sense. Why would the king kidnap them in the middle of the night? His own son was there!

The van came to a stop. A groan was heard from his left where Jaehwan was lying. He was waking up. 

“Jae? Are you oka-” Another kick landed on him before he got to finish his words. Jaehwan moaned, eyes barely open. There was pure fear in his eyes.

Wonshik wasn't scared. He was trained for this, he knew how to get out of it but Jaehwan wasn’t. Yes, Wonshik was training him but to become like him would take years of training and experience.

“Don’t be scared, Jaehwan-ah, we’ll be alright!” he shouted before they were separated and taken into different rooms. It was really dark and Wonshik’s vision was still hazy from the hit on his head. But... that hallway looked familiar. They threw him into a room that looked like an underground illegal interrogation or torture room. They locked the door. He landed on the side that had been kicked by the masked guy in the van. He groaned in pain. Eventually, he passed out. 

He woke up in another room. He was tied to a chair this time by his arms and legs. The room was spinning and everything hurt. He lifted his head with difficulty to find himself nowhere but in the king’s office, just as he had suspected. 

“Rise and shine.” It was the king’s voice coming from across the room. He looked around. Jaehwan was in the corner on the ground, hands tied in front of him, clothes half torn and dusty and his face was colored in bruises.

“Jaeh...” He tried to call but barely any sound came out. He didn’t understand. Why was Jaehwan beaten? Was this because they slept together? It didn’t seem like a fitting punishment.

“What do you want?” Wonshik asked, voice hoarse. His throat screamed in pain.

Finally, the man came into view.

“I want - my useless son - to do his job.” He kicked Jaehwan after every pause. He cried in pain. Wonshik was trying to free himself of the chair but no use.

“Leave him alone, you sick bastard! What the fuck do you want?” Wonshik barked louder.

“It wouldn’t have come to this, you know? If he had done his job you would be dead right now. A peaceful, quiet death. But as the drama queen he is-” another kick “-he had to make things difficult.” He grabbed the boy by the collar and pulled him up to his feet. He pulled out a gun from the back of his pants and planted it into Jaehwan’s hands. The boy sobbed. 

Wonshik tried with the younger. “Jaehwan, what’s going on? Please?”

The boy just sobbed harder, the gun almost slipping out of his shaky hands. 

“He was supposed to neutralize the threat that is you,” the King spat.

“Since when am I a threat?” Wonshik asked with wide eyes. He couldn’t believe after all those years of spotless clean work that this was his reward.

“Since you decided to take my legacy. My kingdom.”

“Why would  _ I _ \- are you crazy? If I wanted an empire, I would’ve built myself one,” Wonshik growled. “Besides, if I actually wanted you dead, you would never hear of it. You’d just simply be  _ dead _ .”

“No need to play innocent.”

“You’re being paranoid! What, you’re getting too old? Do you have some kind of terminal disease?” Wonshik chuckled. The man took the gun from Jaehwan’s hand and shot Wonshik’s right leg. Wonshik just pressed his teeth together, the cry dying in his throat. Lee put the gun back in Jaehwan’s hand and lifted the boy’s arms himself like a marionette.

“Now be a good boy for once in your life and do as your father’s told,” the man whispered in Jaehwan’s ear, making him shriek and cry. He shook his head, tears running down his face like a waterfall.

“Prove that you’re worthy of this chair after I die!” he shouted in anger. He was losing his patience.

Jaehwan stilled, looking dazed. His cry had stopped; he dragged the back of his forearm on his cheeks, drying the tears, and nodded. He stepped closer to Wonshik on the chair. Jaehwan lifted his arms, holding the gun towards Wonshik’s head. He kept coming closer. He was looking at Wonshik but he wasn’t there. Wonshik felt cold all over his body. The boy stopped only one step away from the chair with the gun a few inches away from Wonshik’s head.

Wonshik looked down. He couldn’t bear looking at the younger while he shot him. But one second later Jaehwan turned around, gun pointed at the King.

The man froze in his spot, not expecting the tables turning.

“I never  _ asked _ for this chair! I never asked for _ any of this _ !” Jaehwan shouted, voice not shaking anymore. “I have always been just another one of your pawns.”

The man shook in anger. “You are my  _ heir _ !”

“See? That’s exactly what I’m talking about.” He threw his hands up, still holding the gun.

“Son, put the gun down,” the man said gently, trying to get into Jaehwan’s head by using soft words, but Jaehwan was done.

“Don’t call me  _ son _ . You never treated me like a son.  _ Hell _ , you treated Hakyeon more like a son than me!” he cried. “I did everything you wanted. I always wanted to be an artist. A creator. But you killed all the light and creativity in me when I was still young. You had me homeschooled from the age of 12. I never had any friends.” His voice was trembling but his hands weren’t. While the two were in a heated argument, Wonshik tried to break the zip ties. He didn’t succeed. His hands and legs weren’t tied together so it was almost impossible to break the ties.

Jaehwan had lowered his arms and let his guard down by getting emotional, and the king used his vulnerable moment to pull another small gun from his back, pointing it at his son.

“We both know you won’t shoot me. You don’t have the balls.” The man laughed like a psycho. 

“Kill him or I will kill him right in front you and then kill you. I don’t need a coward as a son.”

Wonshik had no way of breaking out of the chair. They were running out of options. Jaehwan was sobbing with the gun in his hands pointed at his father.

“Jaehwan, hey. Look at me,” Wonshik called. Jaehwan turned his head around to look at him. He had to walk to the side of the room to be able to keep his gun at his father and see Wonshik. The three of them formed a triangle in the middle of the room. “It’s okay.” Wonshik nodded and smiled bitterly at him. He could feel the warm blood running down his legs.

“N...no! No! I won’t. I can’t.” Jaehwan shook his head, more tears streaming down his face.

“Listen to me. It’s going to be okay. I’m okay. Just do it,” Wonshik urged him. Jaehwan cried harder, shaking his head. “Let us say goodbye,” Wonshik said, looking at the king. Jaehwan kept crying ‘ _ no _ ’. 

“Very well.” The king nodded, lowering his gun down halfway.

“Jae, come here.” Jaehwan was shaking in his spot. “Please?” Jaehwan eventually walked towards the chair on shaky legs, dropping to his knees in front of the older. Wonshik leaned forward as much as his tied limbs allowed him to. Jaehwan buried his face in Wonshik’s shoulder, arms hanging limp beside him.

“I’m s...so sorry, I should've told you. I wanted to, but I was scared you would-” Wonshik didn’t let him finish.

“Shhh, it’s okay,” Wonshik whispered in Jaehwan’s ear softly.

“Wonshik… I can’t, please…” he begged.

“Listen to me. I have lived more in the last few months with you than I had the whole 30 years of my life. It’s alright, you can do it,” he reassured. In all honesty, Wonshik wasn’t afraid of dying. He had to live with the fact that any breath could his last, and most of the time he had nothing to lose  _ but _ his life. But now he had Jaehwan and he couldn’t lose him. And between his life and Jaehwan, he had no doubt which one he wanted to keep, even if he didn’t live to enjoy keeping it. Keeping him. The boy with a billion stars in his eyes and the sun in his smile. The boy who begged to have 5 more minutes to sleep every day and wouldn’t stop whining until he had his belly full. The boy who laughed without a care in the world, a laugh that would make every person around laugh too. The boy whose lips were softer than rose petals, whose body was the only thing Wonshik had ever worshipped.

Jaehwan. The boy who showed him life and the one who would take it away.

Jaehwan stood, walking back slowly, tears silently falling down his pink and bruised cheeks. He held his arms straight up in front of him, the gun pointing at Wonshik’s heart. Good, it would be quick. 

“Look at me. Everything's gonna be okay. Just pull the trigger.” Wonshik did his best to smile. He wanted Jaehwan to remember him with a smile. His only regret was that he didn’t get to kiss the boy one last time. He nodded at Jaehwan, tears starting to fill in his eyes. He didn’t want to cry in front of that nasty man.

Jaehwan took a deep breath. It was only a matter of seconds until it was all over - for Wonshik at least. He let his eyes fall closed and counted in his head.

_ 1… 2… 3… 4... 5… 6… 7… _

_ Bang! _

Was it over? Was he dead? He didn’t know; he didn’t feel anything. 

Wonshik opened one eye, slowly scanning around. He was not dead - which meant someone else might be, unless the bullet missed. Jaehwan was still standing in front of him, frozen with wide eyes. He seemed to be unharmed. Wonshik opened both eyes looked around for the King.

He was on the ground laying in a pool of his own blood with a bullet right in the center of his wrinkled forehead.

“Jaehwan? Can you hear me?” Wonshik called. The boy jumped, looking at him in fear. 

“What happened?” the younger asked, not moving from his spot.

“I don’t know. Can you untie me?” Jaehwan looked around the room. No sharp object was around. He kept looking in the drawers but found nothing but a lighter.

Jaehwan melted the plastic ties, trying his best not to burn Wonshik. He was mostly successful.

The door to the room opened as soon as the last tie was broken. Wonshik grabbed the gun Jaehwan had left on the ground quickly and pointed it at the door. It was Hakyeon, the king’s right-hand guy, with a gun in his hand.

“Hakyeon?” Jaehwan gasped, running towards the tall man. The man dropped the gun and caught Jaehwan in his arms while Jaehwan sobbed. Wonshik stood up with difficulty, leaning on his uninjured leg.

“I’m sorry, Jaehwanie. I couldn’t let him do that to you, you would’ve never recovered from killing an innocent man... And your lover.” Hakyeon caressed Jaehwan’s cheeks softly. Wonshik was confused.

“But how?” Jaehwan asked. Hakyeon pointed at the life-size portrait of the king hanging off the opposite wall.

Wonshik squinted his eyes, scanning the painting. There was a bullet hole in it.

“The secret emergency exit. Only me and the King knew about it,” Hakyeon explained.

“I thought you were his most loyal dog,” Wonshik accused. The older gave him an unimpressed look.

“I am loyal. But not to him,” he answered, looking back at Jaehwan with adoration.  _ What was going on between them?  _

Jaehwan answered before he asked. “Hakyeon raised me. He was the one who homeschooled me. He did his best to protect me from my father.”

“No, Jaehwanie, I should’ve done better. Go, I’ll deal with this mess.” He pushed the younger towards Wonshik, urging them to leave.

“What will you do?” Jaehwan asked, moving towards Wonshik to help him walk.

“As far as I’m concerned, you're the boss now.”

“Can you do this one last favor for me?” Jaehwan asked.

“Anything.”

..

“...And then... you draw a big circle for the body,” Jaehwan instructed cheerfully. He was sitting in front of a small green table in front of 3 small kids. “Good job babies! You are so talented!” he cooed, patting their heads. The bell rang and all the kids awed. “I’ll see you guys soon, alright babies?” He went and said goodbye to every kid individually; some of them teared up. The kids loved him.

It had been 6 years since that day... the day they thought it was all over.

They had taken one of the untraceable cars from his deceased father’s garage and drove to Jaehwan’s flat. He only needed a few things. Then they went to the dog nursery to pick up Wonshik’s dog. They needed to disappear for a while until all the mess quieted and for Hakyeon to do the favor Jaehwan had asked.

They went to the cabin and burned it to the ground. They only took the things they had bought themselves.

“Aren’t you gonna miss this place?” Jaehwan had asked before Wonshik threw the lighter.

“...No,” Wonshik sighed. “The only good memories I have of this place are with you. And we’re taking them with us wherever we go.” He had pulled Jaehwan by his waist and kissed his forehead before dropping the lighter. They watched the place burn and then left for the small town close by. They stayed at the motel there for a few days with no real plan. Jaehwan doubted anyone would actually come after them with Hakyeon running the business, but Wonshik insisted they don’t stay in one place until Hakyeon gave them the clear. They moved around for almost 5 months while Hakyeon worked on demolishing the organization from the inside. It was what Jaehwan had asked him; to tear the whole thing up from inside out. He wanted nothing to do with it.

After it was all over and Hakyeon assured them that there was no threat, they came back. But they didn’t stay in the city. It didn’t feel right. So they moved to a small town near where the cabin used to be. They both had enough money in their multiple bank accounts that they didn't need to work for the rest of their lives, but they didn’t do that.

They only took out enough money to rent a decent place to stay and get them by while they found jobs. Wonshik started working as a handyman. He could fix almost anything that was broken. Jaehwan started working part-time at the kindergarten. They got by. Most importantly, they had each other. They decided to keep the money in their accounts until they became stable enough and to only use that money if they absolutely needed it. They never had to do that, except for Jaehwan’s college.

Jaehwan got accepted to the small college near the next town. It was only an hour and a half distance. But they couldn’t afford it with their current incomes. Wonshik insisted they use the money.

“That man took away so much of your life. You deserve to pursue what you truly love.” So they did, and donated the rest of it anonymously to their town. All of it. It was enough to rebuild the whole place.

In just a couple of years, their small town grew. New businesses, more visitors, and better service for the people.

Jaehwan studied graphic design in the next two years. Wonshik bought an empty store in a good deal and got himself a tool shop along with working as a handyman. They were both adored by everyone in the small town. All the kids loved Jaehwan and the parents adored him. Wonshik, although at first a bit cold and quiet, was friendly and polite and all the customers were always happy.

Jaehwan walked home from kindergarten; it was just past 4. He stopped at the pastry shop and bought a small chocolate cake, their favorite. He put the cake in the fridge when he got home because Wonshik wouldn’t be home in a few more hours.

“Hi baby,” Jaehwan squealed, crouching down to pet the dog. He had grown so much. Jaehwan cleaned the house, did laundry and showered.

It was a special day for them. The day they had their first kiss. Not the drunk one. They argued the first year about which date was better to set as their anniversary. Jaehwan thought the day it all almost ended was more appropriate. They found a new beginning. But Wonshik thought the day was way too horrific to be set as their anniversary. So they agreed on the other one.

Wonshik always texted when he was on his way home so Jaehwan had nothing to worry about. He wore some nice clothes, not too formal or anything, just nice and cozy. He put the cake and 5 candles on it with some rose petals scattered on the table. Wonshik opened the door with his keys, peeking inside before stepping in. Jaehwan could see the huge flower bouquet from behind him.

Jaehwan welcomed him with a chaste kiss. “Happy anniversary princess,” Wonshik mumbled on his lips.

“Happy anniversary,” Jaehwan giggled. Wonshik handed him the bouquet, and Jaehwan cooed, smelling the pretty flowers.

“You know, I started calling you princess as an insult at first but here we are,” he teased, leaving feathery kisses all over the younger’s face.

Jaehwan blushed to his ears, giggling and hiding his face in the crook of Wonshik’s neck. The man still managed to make him blush after all those years.

It wasn’t perfect. They had struggles and they had bad days - days where Wonshik couldn’t leave the bed, feeling too weighed down by the guilt of killing all the people he had, days where Jaehwan had nightmares about his father killing Wonshik in front of him. But they got through them together. They had each other.

Their life together was everything they never knew they wanted: a simple house in a small town, with the ball of cuteness that was their dog. 

**Author's Note:**

> It was an honor to participate in this collab and I enjoyed writing this very much!  
I hope you like it ^^  
and of course special thanks to my sweetie Rachel for beta'ing <3333  
comments and kudos are highly appreciated uwu  
u know where to find me:  
tumbr @babieken  



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